Der Blogger

"Enough is enough!" "This can't go on!" "This has to stop!" These were among the comments that came through the blizzard of commentary after the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Broward County. We have heard these words before.

Wanderlust

As a travel destination, Germany has never been more popular. With tourist numbers forecast to rise for an eighth consecutive year, what is the country doing right to account for its thriving visitor numbers?

Akademia

For education experts, English language lessons have proven valuable in primary schools in North Rhine-Westphalia. But the Alternative for Germany’s state parliamentary group in NRW have a rather different view.

Essen & Trinken

Police in the city of Osnabrück had to clear crowds in front of a new döner kebab shop on Tuesday, after about 150 hungry people packed the street outside, eager to get their hands on a döner for only €0.01.

Germericana

Many Americans have German ancestors — and that's also the case for actress Meghan Markle, who will be marrying Prince Harry, himself a descendant of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, a German dynasty.

The 55-year-old had been on a pilgrimage for peace when he was arrested. After arriving home Britsch criticized Turkish authorities, while Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said his release was a further “positive sign.” Britsch spent nearly nine months in a deportation detention center in Askale in eastern Turkey. He described his situation as that of a hostage […]

Rome was up in arms over a proposal by Austria’s new conservative and far-right coalition government to offer passports to the German-speaking residents of the northern Italian province of South Tyrol. The mountainous region, also known by its Italian name Alto Adige, was part of the Austrian-Hungarian empire before being annexed by Italy after World War […]

Two regional trains collided late Friday near Vienna, knocking two carriages over and hurting eight people, none of them seriously, officials said. The accident occurred at 6:00pm near the station of Kritzendorf, about 20 kilometers north-west of Vienna. Four people sustained moderate injuries and four others light wounds, said Infrastructure Minister Norbert Hofer. One person airlifted to […]

Volkswagen has sacked an executive who was jailed for his role in the German automaker’s “dieselgate” scandal – by sending a letter of dismissal to his US prison cell. German newspaper Bild am Sonntag said it learned from sources close to the firm that Oliver Schmidt, who was this month sentenced to seven years in jail, […]

Shortly after the new right-leaning Austrian government was sworn into office on Monday, officials have announced a number of trust-building steps they will take in order to improve relations with Israel and the Jewish people. This comes after the Israeli government announced that it will limit its diplomatic contacts with the cabinet in Vienna due […]

Germany’s economy is humming along, unemployment is at a historic low of under six percent, energy and food prices are lower than in many another European country. But poverty exists in Germany, although without slums – because running water, electricity, sewage systems and garbage collection are a given even in the most basic lodgings. At present, about […]

German authorities said on Friday that Berlin’s new international airport would not open before 2020, eight years behind schedule for a project that has become an enduring political scandal and national laughing stock. Planners said after a committee meeting they were confident they now had a viable roadmap to address the technical defects that have plagued […]

Jewish groups in Germany are pressing the authorities to crack down on anti-Semitic acts following the burning of Jewish symbols and Israeli flags at protests. The American Jewish Committee Berlin, the JSUD group of Jewish university students, the Central Council of Jews in Germany, and the German-Israeli Society have called for tougher law enforcement and for […]

The pilots’ union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) announced on Tuesday that pilots on Ryanair would take part in the first industrial action in the budget airline’s history. The announcement comes after pilot’s unions in Portugal and Italy had also called their members to strike against the Irish company. VC did not name dates for the strikes in order […]

Deutsche Bahn (DB) heralded the opening of the high-speed rail line between Berlin and Munich as a significant moment in German rail history. But the opening went far from smoothly. The new rail line cuts over two hours off train journey between Germany’s two most prominent cities, taking the journey from over six hours to under […]

Kultur

The German term "Heimat," often translated as "homeland," was long thought of as tacky, regressive, and even politically dubious. But since the election, German politicians across the spectrum are using it once again.

Das Kino

This month's Berlin film festival, Europe's first major cinema showcase in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein revelations, will shine a light on sexual misconduct in the industry, its director said on Tuesday.

Gesundheit

In the run-up to international World Cancer Day on Sunday, experts have said that about half of all cancer cases in Germany could be prevented by a healthier lifestyle. Across the country, around 500,000 people are diagnosed with cancer each year. But experts say things like exercise could cut this figure in half. “Movement can […]